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Applying Creative Solutions to Addictions and Mental Disorders

Art therapy is basically the restorative and curative use of art making, which exists in a professional relationship, by people who go through illness, various challenges while living, trauma and a host of others.

It is also useful for people who are seeking personal development. All through the years, using creative mediums which include: painting, sculpting, writing and the likes, have proven themselves to be effective mediums of providing life-transforming advantages.

Below are the various benefits of undergoing art therapy: Visual interaction: The beginning periods of a rehab could prove to be challenging. However, when you continue for a while, and with the support with the staff who are on ground, you would be sure to bounce back to recovery in no time. Art therapy gives the addict an alternative to communicating, as it becomes a substitute voice. Utilizing and knowing more about this mode of communication enables that those who have problems with communicating, have a better means of doing those, especially those who find it hard to vocalize what they went through.

Individual breakthrough: Using art therapy as a means of visual communication boosts the recovery of people who are in unpleasant situations. An individual who shows positive recovery signs during art therapy will conventionally commence a path of self-discovery, and with time, come to trust the therapists.

Self-reflection: Art therapy presents another means of helping an individual to think about his life, and how to make it much better. Addiction has the capacity to induce a twisted reality about a person and his environment in general. Hence, having art therapy in rehabilitation is quintessential to this purpose.

Builds self-confidence: People who do not have a high self-esteem are most likely those who are likely to come down with addiction. The way we see ourselves, tells a lot about how we conduct and live our lives.

Emotional restoration: Going through art therapy assist you in getting better in all aspects, and one which is worthy of mention, is emotional healing. With treatments such as Cognitive Behaviour therapy and regular exercise, an individual would be able to positively adjust himself.

Addiction recovery is largely about counseling, support groups, cognitive exercises and other established treatment methods, but it is also about individualized forms of therapy. Like every other endeavor, addiction recovery is partly about work and partly about therapeutics. Working hard at your recovery by adjusting your thought and behavior patterns is essential, but giving your mental faculties a rest and allowing them to do something calming, healthy and enjoyable is very important to your recovery. Many addicts have long held a habit of unwinding by escaping into their addiction, which is why it is crucial to find new, healthy therapeutic activities to engage in. Several ideas are as follow:

Art. Creating art has long been a favorite therapeutic activity of addiction treatment centers for how many mental health benefits it possesses. Art creation at any level helps people connect with their inner child, express themselves and have a healthy amount of control over a project.

Earth. Getting outside to hike, jog, garden or do any number of athletic or recreational activities is very good for people’s mental health. It connects them with nature, exposes them to therapeutic natural elements and centers them.

Music. Music therapy is universal and highly beneficial. Scientists have found that there is no activity in existence that uses more parts of the brain than playing music. The benefits of music extend to listening to, performing or writing music as well. All recovering addicts should make use of music in their recovery.

Pets. Animal therapy is an amazing recovery tool for struggling addicts. Having an animal around as a pet or a companion is very beneficial to a person’s mental health. It teaches them to be responsible, respectful and put themselves second to another’s needs. It rewards them with love, companionship, loyalty and a range of other benefits.

Other therapies. Basically anything enjoyable that is also mentally healthy can be used in recovery. Productive hobbies are an excellent way of recovering from addiction and promoting strong mental health.

The importance of individualized treatment when it comes to addiction recovery cannot be overstated. Addiction treatment is not at all a “one size fits all” kind of thing. There are many forms of addiction treatment to suit a range of diverse personalities that addicts have, and even these options should be further narrowed down to accommodate each addict’s specific problems. Some professional treatment options are aware of those and cater as much as they possibly can to their client’s needs, while others do not properly value this necessity and give clients little in the way of individual attention.

The first part of narrowing down which addiction treatment option to choose is finding one for people in your demographic. You would be amazed how specific the target clientele is for individual treatment centers. There are treatment facilities created specifically for high profile working professionals, celebrities, males, females, athletes and so on. It is good to choose a rehab that serves your demographic because it means the material will be more relevant to your lifestyle, the other addicts in treatment will have things in common with you and the staff will be accustomed to treating people in your demographic.

The second factor that specializes addiction treatment is even more important than the first: the type of addiction and mental problems that the client is struggling with. People would not seek addiction treatment if they were not in desperate need of help changing their lives around. That means that the issues addressed in treatment need to be specific to each client’s case. Addictions and disorders have roots in problems that have haunted the addict for many years, and learning to reverse them is a highly specialized process. The needs addressed must be tailored to the individual so that they can learn to work through their problems, which are highly specific to them. It is ineffective to counsel someone in depression and anxiety if what they need is trauma and PTSD help. Everyone who commits to addiction treatment should be able to expect that their individual circumstances will be taken into consideration in designing the treatment, but typically, it is only the high quality rehabs that do this.

Addictions and mental disorders are serious conditions that require treatment and personal effort in order to defeat. There are a number of treatment options available to addicts and mentally ill people who need help with their addiction recovery. However, this does not mean that people should only think inside the box when it comes to addiction recovery. There are a number of recovery methods that extend past formal treatment options. Severe or chronic addictions and disorders should always receive professional treatment, but treatment can be supplemented with a number of creative therapies that boost mental health as well as rid a person of their need for their addiction. Some of the more popular therapies may include:

Music therapy. Creating, playing or simply listening to music can serve as a valuable form of addiction therapy for those who are musically inclined. Music has a number of healing qualities to it, including calming effects, brain exercise and a creative outlet. This helps combat addiction by generating good mental health and using many parts of the brain.

Art therapy. One popular form of therapy used by rehabs and counselors is art therapy. Art creation is a well established remedy for addiction and mental illness. It enables the artist to express themselves freely and have total creative control over their art concept. It has been found to be a very effective tool in addiction recovery and is offered as an outlet in a majority of addiction treatment centers.

Nature therapy. The outdoors are universally a way of healing mental problems. Nature was humanity’s original home, and its elements do us a great deal of good to take in. Exploring nature gives much needed exercise, aromatherapy, visual stimulation, fresh air and a feeling of calm.

Pet therapy. The presence of friendly animals should not be underestimated to treatment of addictions and disorders. Tame animals have very positive effects on people’s mental health. Owning a pet is recommended for those who struggle with an addiction or disorder because it lowers blood pressure, helps a person stay physically active and teaches them responsibility and relationship skills.

There are many forms of addiction treatment available to addicts, including rehab, halfway houses, support groups, self help, counseling and the likes. These forms of treatment are what comes to mind when we hear the word “addiction recovery.” The truth is, the scope of recovery extends far past forms of addiction treatment. It is tied to every part of your lifestyle choices. Recovery from addiction can come from anything that brings you healthy kinds of joy, strengthens your character or helps you separate from your addictive tendencies. These may include:

A personal passion. The motivation to answer a calling that makes use of a person’s talents can strike intentionally or randomly. The drive and the focus that come with answering a calling can assist addiction recovery greatly. Following a passion creates a natural, healthy high within a person that can work to defeat their addiction.

Recreational activities. Things that we do for pure enjoyment can be very calming, rewarding and therapeutic to us. Simple activities that are easy on the mind, such as hiking, jogging, gardening or reading, are a way of caring for ourselves and easing our minds. Everyone, including recovering addicts, needs these outlets to stay balanced.

A sense of purpose. Feeling purposeful is very positive for mental health and can work to defeat addiction and enhance recovery. One may derive a sense of purpose from many places; their job, their personal relationships, their vocations or their charitable acts.

Service to others. Being selfless and serving others is a strong nod toward addiction recovery because it builds character, lifts morale, gives a person a sense of purpose and helps people understand that they are a small part of a big world.

Hard work. Putting hard work forward is an age old method of building character. This method is tried and true in armies and boot camps the world over. One does not need to endure boot camp to help their recovery, but revisiting the value of hard work can aid addiction recovery in a number of ways.

Fulfilling relationships. Simply pulling your healthy relationships close to you can make you feel supported, loved and part of a community, which are all good things to help beat an addiction.

Addiction recovery is a challenge even for the highest functioning individuals. No one has an easy time with it as it is a process of intense personal growth. This is why you should let your addiction recovery be a reflection of who you are, so that it is as compatible with your personality as possible. No two people’s recovery looks identical because your recovery is meant to be unique, like you.

Your recovery should have variety, meaning it should include multiple methods. Parts of your recovery will be methodical and pre-structured, such as the treatment plan you work on with the help of mental health professionals, but a person’s recovery has many parts to it other than their treatment plan, such as interaction with your support system, recreational activities and vocational activities. These facets of your recovery should be guided by your passions, your hobbies, your interests and your healthy relationship needs.

A person’s recovery should be tailored to their needs. It is common sense that a person’s interests and passions are already a product of who they are as a person, but something like a standard addiction treatment program may not relate to who someone is as a person. The average addiction treatment program is created to suit the needs of many people rather than one individual. This is why it is important to select an addiction treatment program that is compatible with your needs, and to choose a good quality program that works it’s material around each of its clients.

The purpose of this is to ensure that the material you encounter in treatment is relevant to your needs and speaks to you on a personal level. If a person’s primary mental health issue is anger problems, and they are treated with a program for grief and loss, they will not benefit from it. Similarly, if a person does their best thinking while they are outdoors, but they check into a treatment facility that barely lets them outside, they could miss out on a great deal of cognitive re-evaluation. It is very important that every person’s recovery and addiction treatment are individualized for them.